Scribble Maps is an interesting mash-up that turns Google Maps into an online whiteboard.

It adds common drawing and painting tools such as pencils, lines and colored brushes to the Google Maps interfaces so you can easily sketch freehand drawings, insert text, or even add custom shapes anywhere on the map.

You can then embed the final drawing on a web page as a Flash Widget or Save it as a KML file to view your sketch directly in Google Earth. Hat tip Google Maps Mania.

Scribble Maps may look like a fun app but there are some useful applications. For instance, you can create detailed driving directions to your home by adding annotations to a Google Map. Or if you are going hitchhiking, you can plot the exact trail on Google Maps and share that map will fellow hitchhikers.

Scribble Maps uses the Flash API of Google Maps and can cause your browser to slow down. QuikMaps is another good alternative to Scribble Maps that uses the JavaScript API of Google Maps.

How to Draw in Google Earth

If you are looking for something similar in Google Earth, try Earth Paint – it’s a free plugin that adds painting and drawing capabilities in Google Earth.

The tool adds a variety of drawing tools such as a freehand pencil, ellipse, rectangle, polygon, and text tool. When a drawing is complete, you can publish it as a transparent overlay to Google Earth.

Amit Agarwal is a web geek and founder of Digital Inspiration, a popular tech & how-to website. He has been blogging for over a decade and has also contributed to the Wall Street Journal, Lifehacker and The Financial Express. Sign-up for the email newsletter for your daily dose of tips & tutorials.